Department of Tourism
Follow Footsteps of Lincoln Family Along Ky. Lincoln Heritage Trail

HODGENVILLE, Ky. – On Oct. 12, 2008, you can explore Abraham Lincoln’s roots, talk with state and national park staff, and visit the Lincoln Museum in Hodgenville for an in-depth exploration of the Lincoln family’s early years in Kentucky’s Washington and LaRue Counties. 

• 10:00 a.m. – Begin in Springfield, Ky. at the Lincoln Homestead State Park.   The tour will feature the home of Abraham Lincoln’s mother, Nancy Hanks, as well as replicas of the 1782 cabin and blacksmith shop where Lincoln’s father, Thomas, was raised and learned his trade.  The tour includes the home of Lincoln’s paternal uncle, Mordecai.  This house is the only existing structure owned and occupied by a member of the Lincoln family in Kentucky that still stands on its original site.

• Noon - 1:30 p.m. – Tour moves to the Mordecai Lincoln Restaurant in Springfield.  Ron D. Bryant, Kentucky author and historian, has been invited to offer his perspective on Abraham Lincoln’s Kentucky years.  Cost for this luncheon is $9.99 plus tax. Reservations required – space is limited.

• 2:30 p.m. – Tour resumes in Hodgenville at the Lincoln Museum which includes twelve dioramas showing pivotal times in Abraham Lincoln’s life. 

• 4:00 p.m. – Visit the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site near Hodgenville for a special tour which will conclude in the Visitor Center with the monthly drawing for the Kentucky Lincoln Heritage Trail prize. 

To be eligible for the drawing pick up your passport to the Kentucky Lincoln Heritage Trail at any of the 12 Kentucky Lincoln sites, visit any 10 of these sites and have your passport stamped.  You are then eligible for the drawings that will take place on the 12th of each month until the grand prize drawing on the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth, February 12, 2009.  During the Oct. 12 tour you will be able to collect three of the necessary stamps and drop off your entry for that day’s drawing.

For more information about this tour, to register for the tour or lunch, or to receive a passport for the Kentucky Lincoln Heritage Trail, call 270-358-3137 or email Sandy_Brue@nps.gov.
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The Kentucky Department of Travel, an agency of the Tourism, Arts & Heritage Cabinet, exists to promote The Commonwealth as a travel destination, generate revenue and create jobs for Kentucky’s economy.